MIAMI—The Tour de Florida stop in the southeast region of the state culminated with an evening of worship and a paella dinner as approximately 100 Hispanic pastors and their wives gathered to hear Tommy Green, executive director-treasurer of the Florida Baptist Convention, cast the Challenge 2025 vision.
“We can continue to do the same thing…But God is stirring something…God desires SBC churches in Florida to come together for something greater,” said Green, as Emanuel Roque, Florida Baptists’ Hispanic church catalyst, simultaneously translated the presentation in Spanish.
Green challenged the southeast Florida region to annually plant 30 churches, revitalize 30 churches, baptize 7,500 new believers and engage 2,750 Florida Baptists in mission projects. In addition to the region-specific goals, Green challenged Hispanics to plant between 8 and 10 Hispanic churches.
“Pray, look at these goals and own a part of this,” he said.
Along with these region-specific goals, Green is challenging the entire state to give $33 million annually through the Cooperative Program and $1 million to the Maguire State Mission Offering, which supports church planting across Florida, each year.
Green noted that resources are already available in Spanish, including the planter assessment by the North American Mission Board, which has been hosted twice in Miami and will continue to be available. In addition to training resources, churches will also receive financial support through the Maguire State Mission Offering as well as the Cooperative Program, associational and catalyst collaborations, evangelism conferences, church partnerships and multi-church participation, among others.
During a time for questions, pastors asked if churches meeting in the same building as the sending church would count as church plants. Green answered that churches planted and meeting in the same building will still count towards the church plant goal.
Another pastor expressed concern about the lack of participation of younger generations in church life. Green directed the group to the Convention’s Next Generation Ministries for resources to engage the next generation.
Finally, a pastor encouraged the whole Challenge 2025 vision to be bathed in prayer.
Green agreed that for anything to happen, God must be at the center of it all.
The meeting closed with pastors and wives uniting in prayer at each table.